


Golden

by MyrddinDerwydd



Series: Divergent Paths [1]
Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Forgotten Realms
Genre: Choices, Elves, Erotica, F/M, Family, First Love, Half-Elves, Love, New Lovers, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Ravens, Shapeshifting, Tea, Trust, feathers - Freeform, kenku
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-31
Updated: 2017-05-31
Packaged: 2018-11-07 02:21:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11049309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyrddinDerwydd/pseuds/MyrddinDerwydd
Summary: MacHuginn and Karrakaniin are glad to be back at Dragonwatch Keep after many exhausting months on the road battling demons, drow, aberrations and many other enemies, all while trying to determine who is actually trying to destroy the world. They are finally together, safe, and with a night of peace. A series of intimate, entertaining, and endearing moments ensue as they wake up in the morning.Vingette that is epilogue for my Forgotten Realms storyDivergent Paths, and contains some spoilers for that work.The Myrddin Blog





	Golden

**Author's Note:**

> All 3 characters are original, and are kenku, which is a large humanoid raven creature. They've existed since at least 2nd Edition Dungeons and Dragons, but change with each version. In my world they are approx 4 ft tall, are distinctly raven-like in their coloration and features, and have full-sized wings and beaks in addition to arms and legs that are avian-humanoid. They are potentially very intelligent, are excellent mimics, and capable of learning to use magic just as readily as any other race in Faerun. One of their racial abilities is shapeshifting into other similar creatures, but there are always signs for those who know where to look.
> 
> This is a story that obsessively floated around in my head until I wrote it.  
> Rated mature for nudity and sexual content, nothing explicit.
> 
> Sidenotes:  
> Deneir is a god of knowledge. MacHuginn is a cleric in his service.  
> Savras is a god of magic and divination. Karrakaniin and Erkiri are clerics in his service.  
> The Manathrovail "Wings of Fate" is an entire order of kenku priests, based at a reclusive temple of Savras in Lurkwood. "Quesse" simply means Feather, and is the title of the leader of the order - Karrakaniin.

Mac shifted awkwardly as he woke up, feeling strange for some reason as he started to stretch -- he froze, breath catching in his throat as he saw Karra. She was curled up against his right side, head pillowed on his shoulder. Her beak was tucked neatly over her own shoulder, and one hand was buried in the feathers of his chest. The lump in his throat loosened a little, and his heart stopped pounding quite so fast as he watched her sleeping peacefully. Though the blanket was pulled up past Karra’s waist, he knew his hand rested on the inside of her hip, arm wrapped around her waist and holding her close. With each breath he felt the pads of his fingers brush against her skin, tucked beneath her feathers. Deneir forgive him, but right now he doubted that any story - however well-written - could capture this feeling. Mac could only thank the gods that they had this time together, and trust that they’d find a way to save everything that they held dear. 

A few minutes had probably passed in this manner when he heard soft sounds outside the door. He tensed, reflexes heightened by months of living in the underdark calling magic to his free hand almost instantly. His talons glowed softly, the divine white fire gently illuminating the room despite how much damage it could do when unleashed. A clink sounded from near the floor outside, but it wasn’t metallic. It was followed by the unmistakable sound of a key unlocking the door to Karra’s room. “Who in the nine hells would have a key - ” Mac thought in a flurry, debating whether he should wake the kenku sleeping beside him, eyes scanning for the emerald spear. It was on the other side of the room, leaning against her desk only a few feet from the entrance. 

 Another faint clink and the sound of talons on stone snapped his attention back to the door as it began to open. Whoever it was, they didn’t seem to be trying to hide their intrusion. A solidly-built kenku about the same height as Mac slowly pushed the door open with his shoulder as he stepped into the room. His back was toward the bed, and he was moving as though carrying something in front of him. Mac saw him hesitate as he began to turn, probably spying the unfamiliar spear only a few feet away. The kenku’s eyes flicked to the empty chair and the discarded clothing as he completed his turn and entered the room. Mac let the magic fade from his hand with a soft sigh of relief as their eyes met. Erkiri stood there, holding a tray with a ceramic teapot and two teacups. 

The steam was the only thing moving for a moment, as Karra’s son froze just inside the doorway. Not only was the cleric her son and Mac’s friend, it was also he who had been in charge of the Manathrovail for the past few months. That explained the key - if not the teapot. Wide-eyed surprise was written clearly across the younger kenku’s face as his eyes flicked between the strict, reserved Quesse, who he would have expected to be very awake and meditating at this hour, and the open-hearted, adventurous priest of Deneir who was so obviously her lover. 

  _-Erkiri, I can speak to you telepathically. Please close the door for a moment, and let’s avoid waking Karra right now as well.-_

 To Erkiri’s credit, he didn’t really startle much at the message, but his eyes locked with Mac’s as he reached out with one foot to close the door. Respect and concern filtered through the surprise as he held the one-eyed priest’s gaze, “By the gods,” Erkiri thought, seeing the gem in place of Mac’s right eye, “it really is true… I never quite believed Nya until now.” He stepped to Karra’s desk and quietly sat down the tray with its steaming burden. Hesitating only a second, he started to move back toward the door to leave. 

  _-Good man. But then, I already knew that.-_

 Mac was smiling as the words reached Erkiri’s mind, and he could feel the warmth in his tone despite the lack of actual, spoken words. 

  _-You have more than earned an explanation from me, and you have my word that I will share the truth before the day is done: both about my eye and about us, if you wish it.-_

Erkiri was also smiling as he bowed slightly toward the other kenku, whose arm was still wrapped comfortably around the sleeping Karrakaniin. He turned then, slipping back out of the room and pulling the door closed behind him as he had many times before. “Well,” he thought as he walked away, “I definitely think she’ll enjoy her morning tea even more than usual today.”

 Back in the room Mac was still smiling as well. “We are truly blessed,” he thought as the door closed, “both in finding each other and in having others who care about us as well.” Glancing down, he debated whether he could get up without waking Karra. Curiosity won out, as it usually did, and he started gently working his arm out from under her body. She shifted as well and he felt her hands flex, fingers stretching as she started to wake. One hand was still buried  in the feathers of his chest, and his eyes half closed in pleasure at her touch. Karra settled back into the blankets though, and he extricated himself and walked over to the tray Erkiri had left. His brows furrowed slightly as he stared at the steaming teapot. “Hot tea? Maybe it’s for divination,” he thought, “because I’ve definitely never found a way to not burn my beak drinking something like this.” Flipping over one of the teacups, which matched neither each other nor the teapot, he filled the cup most of the way. As the golden liquid poured out, the scent washed over him, crisp and refreshing as a spring breeze. 

 Karra stirred in her bed as the scent filled the small room, and Mac turned back from the desk to watch her. She was still lying on her side, half under the blanket. Her left arm was wrapped around her waist, her right hand on the bed where he had been. She stretched again, talons grasping the blanket and pulling it down off of herself as she straightened her legs. Her fingers flexed and, finding the bedding instead of feathers as they had moments before, she sat up abruptly and glanced around. It took only a fraction of a second for her eyes to find him, chuckling at her expression as he stood by the desk. She relaxed then, at least a little, and the look on her face was only slightly disappointed. 

 Blinking several times, the room came into focus for Karra as she sat staring at Mac from the bed. She still wasn’t sure why he was at her desk instead of beside her, as he had been every time she woke for the past few weeks, but he was here. She knew he would be. She knew it, and believed it beyond a shadow of a doubt, yet her racing heart said that she still feared being alone again after allowing herself to care about him so deeply. 

“Good morning, love.”

 She blushed, feathers on her cheeks rising awkwardly as she heard those tender words. 

 “Love… there is still so much wrapped up in that word that I don’t understand,” she said softly, “but I know that we are meant to find out together.” 

 Neither of them had moved when Mac spoke again a moment later. 

 “I poured you a cup of tea, and it smells wonderful...although I truly don’t know how you drink it.” 

 Karra glanced down at the desk beside him, breaking away from Mac’s gaze for the first time since she woke. Although the scent of mint filled the room, it was so familiar to her that she actually had not noticed the tray until just then. She tilted her head slightly, giving him a curious, amused look. 

 Probably the same way that you would.” As she spoke, her slender shoulders shrugged, feathers rippling and then fading away into smooth brown skin. The tough leathery scales on her legs and arms melted, gentle curves replacing sharp angles. Raven-black hair parted over the tips of pointed ears, then curved toward her jaw, stopping just short of her shoulders. Her beak shrunk quickly, leaving a nose that seemed only a bit too large for her face. Karra’s wings disappeared entirely. Mac could see the edges of dark, tattoo-like feathers across the tops of her shoulders, and he knew the lines would extend down her back as they had always done on his own. 

 Exaggeration had never been one of her traits, and this held true now as well. Karra was a slender kenku, having lived a quiet life of study until a few months ago. The elven woman sitting there on the bed was petite, soft, and shapely, with small rounded breasts and narrow hips, and she was no taller than she had been a few moments before. She blinked twice as the transformation completed itself, and Mac’s breath caught in his throat as she met his gaze -- her eyes were a deep, rich gold. 

 He watched, spellbound as she unfolded her legs and stepped away from the bed. She noticed his attention as she walked toward him, movements quick and precise as always, but took it for surprise at her simple solution to the problem of hot tea. “I did not realize that I missed mint tea so much until just now.” Speaking as she lifted the filled cup, her hair fell forward around her face. She closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. 

 A few inches away, her lover was paying far more attention to her than to the tea. It wasn’t that he hadn’t seen a naked woman or elf before, and his imagination certainly could come up with plenty as well, but this was _her._ It was Karra standing in front of him, confident, happy, and beautiful. The fact that she seemed completely unaware of the effect she was having on him only added to the feeling. It felt like reading a favorite book again with new eyes -- the words hadn’t changed, but you understood the story more deeply, with a richer appreciation for it than before.

Reaching out, he gently touched the back of her shoulder, tracing a dark brown line of feather markings with his knuckle as they ran down toward her hips. She took a long drink of the tea, breathing a sigh of contentment as she looked at him. Mac opened his beak to speak, but had to clear his throat and try again when he met those golden eyes. Raising an eyebrow at him and smirking a little, Karra took another drink of the cooled tea and emptied the cup. “Always surprising to catch him speechless,” she thought. Sitting the cup down, she lifted the teapot and filled it again. 

 “You are incredibly beautiful in any form, Karra.” His voice was tender and thick with emotion when he spoke. 

 It was her turn to look puzzled as the tea again filled the room with its refreshing scent. “What do you mean, Mac? I am not really all that beautiful normally, and this is just…” Karra shrugged one shoulder. “Well, this is not really me anyway…” She trailed off as she saw the look on his face that said otherwise. 

 “Inside and out, and in any true form, you are beautiful. Trust me on this, too -- that shape is yours.” Mac spoke with a quiet intensity that surprised her, and it showed on her face. He held her gaze, seeing those golden eyes searching his own. 

 “I know you Karra, and when you shifted shape there was no reason for anyone other than yourself to be here with me right now. And here you stand.” Brushing his hand down her back again, he took a steadying breath, “A beautiful, slender, golden-eyed elf.”

 She searched his eyes as she thought about his words. Picking up the teacup, she took a sip before she spoke. “I do not think that I have ever thought about it that way before, Mac… but perhaps you are right.” The words seemed careful, like she was thinking through them as she spoke. Another sip of tea. “This is not a form that I usually spend a long time in, but I am... comfortable here.” A sharp, decisive nod, followed by a longer drink of tea. “Yes, this is still me.” 

 “May I join you?” Mac gestured at the tea. 

 “Of course.” 

 She should have expected what happened next, but her lips parted in surprise as her lover’s feathers rippled and began to disappear in just the same way that her own had a few minutes earlier. 

 His hair was a little longer and thicker than Karra’s, but just as black. She had seen this form before, and he usually tied his hair back in a short braid or tail, but it fell in a loose wave to his shoulders at the moment. His ears weren’t quite as pointed, and he had a sharp, strong jawline that hinted at the willfulness she knew so well. Although it didn’t look as odd on a half-elf as it might on an elf, Mac’s beak shrank into a nose that was a bit crooked as well as being just a bit too big. He was barefoot, of course, feathers and talons having smoothed into skin a shade lighter than her own. His build was lean, but solid and tough from years of flying, fighting, and travelling in addition to reading at the temple. The same markings covered his back, but dark grey. Normally he was taller in this form to match what others expected of a half-elf, but today he kept his height as it was -- only two inches taller than she. One dark grey eye met hers, the other deeply scarred and holding its familiar gem. 

The hand on her back felt warmer than a moment ago, and his fingers trailed across her waist as he flipped over the other teacup and filled it. Taking a deep breath of the aroma and sipping it as she had, he had to agree that the tea was nice. “Was it normal for her to do this every morning?” He thought, “Is that why Erkiri arrived with the tea so nonchalantly?” Watching from over the rim of the teacup, she regained her composure and they sipped their tea in comfortable silence for a few moments. 

 “You keep the eye because this is a… true form for you, yes?” She asked quietly. 

 He nodded once, “Odin. It is part of who I am, so I usually keep it.”

 Both of them finished their tea at the same time, and he set the two cups back on the tray. She reached out to him then, touching his chest. Tentatively, she ran her hands across his shoulders, then down his arms to take his hands. She seemed very curious, which was unusual, but he certainly wasn’t going to stop her. Taking one hand in both of hers, he watched her look him over and then slide her fingers between his, interlacing them together. The fit was comfortable, just as with their hands as kenku. He brushed her hair back with his free hand, tucking it behind an ear and then tracing his fingers along her jaw. Karra looked up at him then, a bit of uncertainty in her eyes. Leaning forward slightly, he brushed her nose with his own and then pressed his lips to hers in a gentle kiss. 

 

Their fingers were still interlaced, and she gripped his hand tightly as the kiss continued, his tongue gently parting her lips. Soft moans escaped both of them as they each tasted the mint tea. Startled, they pulled back at the same instant. Breathing fast, and close enough to feel each other’s body heat, Mac’s chuckle broke the tension a moment later. 

He whispered playfully, “For my first time tasting mint tea, I must say I’m enjoying it quite a lot.” 

Karra started to laugh, but then stopped as she processed his words. “But if you have never… then who made the tea…” Her face and neck reddened instantly, flushing in embarrassment as his rueful grin answered her question. “Erkiri was here… When was he here? I am so sorry, I did not even think about - ” 

 His fingers over her mouth momentarily stopped the flow of words, but she didn’t look any less embarrassed. “I have no idea what he will think…” He felt her whisper anxiously against his hand. 

 “It was shortly before you woke, and he seemed very surprised, but it will be fine. I am going to talk to him today - about me being Odin, as well as about us if that is okay.” She was almost scowling when she met his gaze again. “You can talk to him first, of course, if you’d rather.” 

 She nodded sharply, and he slid his hand to her cheek. She sighed, “I should go do that now…”

 Mac raised an eyebrow at her, “Why? He already knows, and you trust him. Spending the rest of the morning with me instead makes much more sense.” 

 He could see her thinking it through before reluctantly deciding that he was right, which ended with her shaking her head slightly. “Nothing is ever simple anymore.” She seemed to dislike what she had just said though, and shook her head again. “No, that is not always a bad thing. We are complicated and sometimes a mess, but we are still exactly where we are meant to be. Complicated just means we have more paths to sort through, right?” 

 Mac was grinning at her, loving the calm determination he heard and saw. “Definitely. And one of those options is…” he leaned in to kiss her again, but she pulled away. 

 “We finished the tea Mac, we can transform back now.” She didn’t seem upset, just slightly confused.

 “Or… we can try something else. A different path, as you said.” His hand slid down her neck, tracing the line of her collarbone and ending cupping her breast. Her breath quickened, and he could feel her nipple pressing into his palm. 

“Mac, we cannot… these forms are not really…” she trailed off uncertainly as her own body tried to convince her otherwise. “I do not know if I can do this, Mac… I have never done anything remotely as complicated as mating while I was an elf.” 

 “Neither have I.” His hand slid slowly down her stomach, stopping on the inside of her hip, where it had been resting when he woke. “But I think we can figure it out, if we want to. This is all still just the two of us, Karra. Nothing else.” He held her gaze and left the decision in her hands, knowing what he was asking of her, and not wanting to spoil the morning. While he soaked in the passion that they felt, easily allowing it to wash through him, she was still accustomed to pushing everything away. It was almost a battle of wills for her to even face that much emotion, such strong sensations. She could do it - with him. They had mated for the first time only a few weeks ago, and she had wanted to be his lover so intensely that it had seemed like she would fly to pieces if she thought of anything but the two of them. 

 Mac was torn, wanting to know Karra in this form as well, but acutely aware of how just how careful he had to be about pushing her. “We are both so much more comfortable with each other than we were then, but she still hasn't truly opened up to me,” he thought. “Will she give something so unfamiliar a chance? If it goes poorly, I fear she may shut down about anything new for a very long time…”

 She could feel it welling up as her heart raced --- so much emotion that she had always locked away. It was easier that way, especially when her emotions had so often been grief, fear, and frustration. This would be intense, overwhelming. Uncertainty tinged her thoughts as well, “Neither of us even knows these forms that well… I am not certain whether we _should_ do this, either.” Again she found herself thinking of possibilities. Choices. “Does it matter? Do I need to know for sure?” But she did know that she wanted to be with him now, just as she had for the past few months… wanted to be part of something so vibrant and alive as she and Mac were. The decision she had made was a commitment to choosing a path instead of just following one, and she felt that conviction still -- it resonated in her very soul.

 Karra gently disentangled their fingers, a smile playing across her lips at the slight disappointment she saw flash in Mac’s eyes. A fierce pride quickly took its place as she placed her hands on his stomach instead of stepping away, and his thumb stroked the skin on the inside of her hip. She could feel his breath quicken as she took a small step toward him, slipping her hands around to rest on his back. She breathed in sharply as her breasts touched his chest, and he swiftly kissed her.

 Mac closed his eyes and deepened the kiss, sliding his fingers into her hair and tilting her mouth toward his. The smoothness of her skin was strange, alluring. Feathers could be indescribably soft, but they were still present, a layer that separated you from the world… from your lover. He closed the remaining inch or so between them quickly, his other hand high on the back of her thigh, pulling them close. 

 They both trembled as their hips and thighs pressed together. The scent of the golden mint tea was on their skin, and they tasted it on each other’s lips. Neither of them thought about pulling back this time.

**Author's Note:**

> Curious about MacHuginn's missing eye? 
> 
> He carries a large spherical diamond that is an extraordinarily powerful magical Artifact, known as the Eye of Odin. Yes, Artifact with a capital A. Like the Odin of Norse mythology, there was once a powerful servant of Deneir that sacrificed his own eye in pursuit of knowledge. It has now come to him, and he too made the same choice - to serve Deneir to the best of his ability. He could (and has) concealed it when he shapeshifts, and normally wears an eyepatch (enchanted, of course).


End file.
